J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
Five major offshore events are taking place this Memorial Day (USA) and Bank Holiday (Europe) weekend; they are the RORC Myth of Malham Race, the Storm Trysail Club’s Block Island Race, the FIGAWI Race to Nantucket, the Swiftsure Race in Victoria, and the Spinnaker Cup off San Francisco. Check them out! Great racing taking place across the world with dozens of J/Teams participating.Meanwhile, the second annual J/121 Spring Tune-Up took place off Newport, RI for five teams. It was a great two days of coaching and learning for everyone involved in the training program. Down south in Tampa, FL, the Davis Island YC hosted the final J/24 event of their winter season of sailing- the J/24 Rodeo. Out west, the San Francisco YC hosted their annual Elite Keel Regatta for one-design fleets of J/70s and J/105s off Belvedere, CA, with sailing taking place on San Francisco Bay.
Over in Europe, the J/70 sailing leagues are cranking up to full-speed. The Swiss J/70 Super League had a dozen teams sailing off Brissago, Switzerland, on the northern end of Lago Maggiore (bordered with Italy). Literally one big lake away off to the north, the Deutsche Segel Bundesliga (the German J/70 Sailing League) was sailed off Konstanz, Germany, a gorgeous lakeside town on Lake Constance for 36 teams from across Germany for both 1st and 2nd Leagues. Then, up in Scandinavia, the Swedish J/70 Sailing League started off their first series with eighteen teams at Strängnäs, Sweden- on a lake 40 miles west of Stockholm. Over in The Netherlands, a fleet of ORC/ IRC racers and one-design classes of J/80s and J/109s sailed in the 9th annual Almere Regatta off Almere.
In the J/Community are two interesting articles. One is “What does performance bring to cruising?” The other is a question of J/70 downwind sailing tactics posed to J/70 World Champion tactician Lucas Calabrese- what are wind/speed crossovers for DSPL/VMG to WoW to Planing modes?
See the NEW J/99 Offshore Speedster
Newport - Houston - San Francisco!
(Newport, RI)- There's a new 33 footer in town, and based on early sailing reports, it's fast, stable, and has a surprisingly comfy interior (with headroom). If that sounds familiar, it's because J/Boats has been re-defining the ultimate racer/cruiser for over three decades, leaving its indelible mark on the sailing world with racer-cruisers like the J/35, J/109 and J/120 amongst many notable others.
With racing recently trending towards adventure-style, open-course events, the J/99 is optimized for straight-line speed for both a short-handed and normal sized crew – taking its cues from its bigger sister, the 40' J/121 (Sailing World BOTY winner in 2018). High customer demand has already pushed the order backlog out to the spring of 2020, but three J/99s are just hitting the water for this season, and you're invited to see and sail one at the upcoming:
J/99 Open House & Demo Day
Saturday June 1st in three locations:
- Newport, Rhode Island
- Houston (Seabrook), Texas
- San Francisco (Alameda), California
RORC Myth of Malham Race Preview
(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- This bank holiday weekend, 140 yachts, with over 900 crew from all over the world, will be competing in the Royal Ocean Racing Club's Myth of Malham Race. A huge variety of yachts will be taking part including, hi-tech racing yachts, performance cruising yachts and classic designs. World Class professional sailors and passionate Corinthians will be taking part, and 36 teams will be taking on the offshore race Two-Handed.
The 2019 Myth of Malham Race will start from the Royal Yacht Squadron Line on Saturday 25 May 0800 BST. Spectators can watch the spectacle from the Cowes Parade and The Green, and fans can also follow the progress of the fleet via YB Tracking on the RORC website.
“The forecasts for the Myth of Malham Race are predicting light winds at the start,” commented RORC Racing Manager Chris Stone. “Unfortunately, the tidal conditions may favour the faster boats out of the Solent, but without starting the race at 5 a.m. that cannot be avoided. The forecasts are suggesting that the wind will go to the west later in the race and strengthen, which should give some good results in the small to medium size and boats and good conditions for the sail back from the Eddystone Light.”
The overall and class winners are decided by the IRC Rating Rule and this year's impressive fleet has many successful teams from previous editions of the Myth of Malham Race.
In IRC One Class, Michael O’Donnell’s J/121 DARKWOOD and Nick Angel’s J/121 ROCK LOBSTER will be sailing in a strong class of twenty-three boats that range up to 72 feet! Both J/121s rate at the bottom of their class, which may be helpful if they finish fast after the initial finishers.
In the twenty-nine boat IRC Two Class, French teams will provide formidable opposition, including Gilles Fournier & Corinne Migraine’s J/133 PINTIA, which won the Myth of Malham Race overall in 2016. Giving them a run-for-the-money will be four J/122s- David Richards’ JOLLY JELLYFISH, Andy Theobold’s R&W, Clive Miles’ JANGLE, and Chris Daniel’s JUNO. Joining them will be Simon Grier-Jones’ J/111 SNOW LEOPARD.
The majority of the teams racing Two-Handed are in IRC Three, many of them are J/109s. Those teams include the Royal Air Force SA’s RED ARROW skippered by Gillian Burgess, the Royal Navy SA’s JOLLY JACK TAR skippered by Tom Thicknesse, Rob Cotterill’s MOJO RISIN, Andy Oliver’s JENGU, Chris Andrew & Joe Sutton’s JIGSAW, Joppe Schepers & Jasper Heikens’ JOMALIJA, Chris Burleigh’s JYBE TALKIN, and Alistair Doughty’s JELENKO. Two J/105s are sailing- Tom Hayhoe & Natalie Jobling’s MOSTLY HARMLESS and Ross Farrow’s JACANA.
The forty-two boat IRC Four Class has several good J/crews; those boats include David & William McGough’s J/109 JUST SO; three J/105s (Paul Lewis’ RUM N CORK II, Stuart Rhys-Williams’ TAIKA, and Jerry Freeman’s JULIETTE); Chris Miles & Mike Sellers’ J/97 HIGH JINKS; and Alan Macleod’s J/92 SAMURAI J.
A number of the IRC 3 and IRC 4 boats are also sailing as doublehanders in the IRC Two-Handed Class. Those teams include the J/109s JUBILEE, Joppe Schepers & Jasper Heikens JOMALIJA, JELENKO and JUST SO. The J/105 TAIKA and J/97 HIGH JINKS are also racing in class. For more RORC Myth of Malham sailing information.
STC Block Island Race Preview(Larchmont, NY)- The second major Memorial/ Bank holiday offshore race to start is a classic for Northeast sailors in America. Storm Trysail Club’s Block Island Race is a 186.0nm race from Stamford, east down Long Island Sound, out around Block Island and back to the finish off Stamford. The race starts on Friday, May 24th at 1400 hrs, with IRC 1 class first away.
Racing the Block Island course are over a dozen larger J’s. In IRC 2 Class are two J/44s (Len Sitar’s VAMP and the US Coast Guard Academy’s team). The IRC 3 Class has two J/121s (Steven Levy’s EAGLE and Akimatsu Hirai’s CRESCENT IV from Japan) and Dale & Michael McIvor’s J/133 MATADOR. The PHRF 3 Class has two J/105s; Frank Conway’s RAPTOR and the American YC Youth team- the Young American’s. In PHRF 5 Class are two J/109s (Jeffrey Warren’s ARIEL and John Greifzu’s GROWTH SPURT), Arthur Hanlon’s J/112E DAUNTLESS, and Mark Nannini’s J/120 SALACIA. The PHRF 7 Class is virtually all J/111s, including John Donovan’s LIBERTAS, Abhijeet Lele’s VARUNA, US Merchant Marine’s BLACK DIAMOND YCC skippered by Alex Mueller, and Bill & Jackie Baxter’s FIREBALL. Finally, the PHRF 8 Class has Brian Prinz’s J/125 SPECTRE.
Sailing the shorter Plum Island Course of 125.0nm in PHRF 4 Class is the US Merchant Marine Academy’s J/88 YONDER YCC, skippered by Jack Stancil. For more Storm Trysail Club Block Island Race sailing information. Entries/ scores. Race site.
FIGAWI Race Preview(Hyannisport, MA)- The third major offshore Memorial Day event, “The Figawi”, arose originally to celebrate community and local charity over thirty-three years ago. The event started last Saturday, May 18th for the 33rd Annual Figawi Charity Ball at the Resort & Conference Center in Hyannis, MA. This year’s theme was FIGAWI FIRE & ICE and the music was provided by America's #1 Dance Party Band, the “Soul Sound Revue”, the hottest 9-piece Motown show this side of Detroit.
The sailing regatta is held every Memorial Day Weekend. The schedule begins on Friday in Hyannis with the Kickoff Summer Party that includes registration for the race and merchandise sales. Saturday morning, sans hangover (hopefully), the PHRF pursuit-style races starts off Hyannis at 10:00am and sends the fleet off on a 25.0nm race to Nantucket usually arriving late afternoon. Sunday is a lay day to enjoy the various events in the Figawi tents, walking the docks of Nantucket Boat Basin to take in all the activity, joining the spectators at the parade honoring fallen soldiers, and the infamous party in the big tent to close out Sunday night.
The race annually expects over 240 boats and 3,000 participants in 13 classes; it is quite popular with J/sailors in New England! Four teams are sailing in PHRF S1 division, David Southwell’s J/121 ALCHEMY, Jimmy Masiero’s J/122 URSUS MARITIMUS, Chris Lund’s J/133 JUMP, and Cory Eaves’ J/109 FREEDOM.Seven J/105s are sailing in PHRF S2 division, such as the Nantucket High School Sailing team on CLIO, the trio on DARK’N’STORMY (Joyce, Reservitz, Wagner), Mary Schmitt’s HARDTACK, Gerry Lorusso’s LYRIC, Dwight Greenhouse’s SKIPPERDEE, Mass Maritime’s BOUNTY, and Ed Lobo’s WATERWOLF. Joining them are Sam Cushing’s J/80 THE PARTY TREE and Andrew Meincke’s J/97 ADRENALINE.
Two J/46’s are sailing PHRF B division, Nathan Owen’s SEABISCUIT and Richard Egan’s WINGS. There is also a duo of J/35s racing, Jeff Kent’s BLACKSEAL and Mike Hersey’s RESILIENCE.PHRF C division has three J/crews, Ben Hodgson’s J/100 GRIMACE, Ira Perry’s J/29 SEEFEST, and Kirk Brown’s J/40 JAZZ. In PHRF D division is John Ryley’s J/30 OTIS. Tom Ellis’ J/34 COVERAGE is racing PHRF H division. Mark Barrett’s J/30 MOJO will be sailing PHRF L division. FIGAWI Race sailing information- Entries/ results. Regatta site.
Swiftsure Race Preview(Victoria, British Columbia)- The fourth major Memorial Day offshore event is simply known as “the Swiftsure”. One hundred sixty-six yachts are entered in the 76th Swiftsure International Yacht Race that will start on Saturday, May 25th. The fleet will use either PHRF or ORC rating system for one of the four courses ranging from 79 to 138 nm that start and finish in Victoria, BC. There are dozens of J/Teams that are participating in this famous offshore event in the Pacific Northwest. Below are the courses and the J/Teams sailing each race.
The Cape Flattery Race for Monohulls (PHRF handicapped boats)- it goes from the Clover Point start, leaves the mark at Neah Bay to port, and crosses the finish line across Victoria Harbour– 101.9 nautical miles. Sailing this race is Tom Keffer’s J/42 VELOCITY, Bill Fox’s J/160 JAM, Ron Holbrook’s J/133 CONSTELLATION, Scott Campbell’s J/121 RIVA, three J/120s (Kirk Palmer’s SCOUT, Mike Picco’s WILD BLUE, Chris Johnson’s WITH GRACE), three J/109s (Tom Sitar’s SERENDIPITY, Kirk Fraser’s ECLIPSE, Tolga Cezik’s LODOS), and three J/35s (Karl Haflinger’s SHEARWATER, Don Leighton’s TAHLEQUAH, Chad Stenwick’s THE BOSS). In addition is a one-design fleet of nine J/105s, including Doug Schenk’s FREE BOWL OF SOUP, Doug Pihlaja’s ABSTRACT, Chuck Stephen’s PANIC, Georgina Martin’s TROUBLEMAKER, Dana Sibilla’s ESCAPE ARTIST, Erik Kristen’s MORE JUBILEE, Bob Hayward’s KINETIC, Steve Summers’ PUFF, and Chris Phoenix’s JADED.
The Juan de Fuca Race for Monohulls (PHRF handicapped boats)- goes from the Clover Point start, leaves the mark at Clallam Bay to port, and crosses the finish line across Victoria Harbour– 78.7 nautical miles. J/Teams participating in this race include Ron Mackenzie’s J/37 FUTURE PRIMITIVE, Phil Wampold’s J/92 ZAFF, Peter Dorsey’s RUSH, and two J/30s (John Collins’ SPUD & Ulf Gwildis’ IMPULSIVE),In addition, there is a “day race” that is comprised of random legs around government marks that is announced the morning of the race; course lengths vary based on wind strength and direction. Participating in the inshore race is Matt Dahabieh’s J/29 GODZILLA, two J/30s (Jim Bottles’ CELEBRATION & Bart Blainey’s LIMELIGHT), and Tom Kerr’s J/105 CORVO 105. For more Swiftsure Race sailing information
California Offshore Race Week Series Preview(San Francisco, CA)- The 2019 California Offshore Race Week is hosted by Encinal Yacht Club, Monterey Peninsula Yacht Club, Santa Barbara Yacht Club and San Diego Yacht Club. Together, they connect three distances races into a full offshore race week series. The series first race is now the fifth major offshore Memorial Day event!
Said one owner that has participated in previous series, “it’s the perfect series of races to kick off summer. Condensed into a tight window to accommodate our busy schedules - we get the chance to experience all of the challenges of too much and too little wind while racing along the picturesque California coast. We are all looking forward to the exhilarating downwind conditions and finishing in the San Diego sun. We’re packing the sunscreen!”
The three events are the following:
- May 25- Spinnaker Cup Race- San Francisco, CA to Monterey
- May 27- Coastal Cup Race- Monterey, CA to Santa Barbara
- May 30- SoCal 300 Race- Santa Barbara, CA to San Diego
The event has proved popular with J/Teams on the Pacific coast. Participating in all three races in both the ORR-A Class and PHRF B Class will be the J/125 VELVET HAMMER, skippered by Zachery Anderson from Richmond YC (note- they are also entered in the 50th Transpac Race).Sailing just the Spinnaker Cup Race from San Francisco down to Monterrey, CA will be seven J/Crews. In the PHRF D Class are two J/120s, Timo Bruck’s TWIST and Michael Clarke’s J/120 SHENANIGANS from Richmond YC. In the PHRF E Class are three J/105s (Shafaq Sheikh’s SPARTAN, Chris Kim’s VUJA STAR, and Charlie Abraham’s JAVELIN), Vern Zvoleff’s J/88 RABIAN, and Kevin Mills’ J/36 DAWNS EARLY LIGHT.
Finally, joining the fleet for the SoCal 300 Race are two more high-octane, extremely fast offshore teams. Sailing in ORR E class are Scott Grealish’s J/121 BLUE FLASH and Doug & Jack Jorgensen’s J/111 LIVE WIRE. For more California Offshore Race Week sailing information
The SAILING Champions League- Porto Cervo Preview
(Porto Cervo, Italy)- The One Ocean SAILING Champions League gets underway May 23rd in Porto Cervo. The international event is organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, with the support of sponsor partner Audi. Twenty-four teams are participating, representing sixteen nations. The only Italian leg of the semi-finals will be followed by the qualification leg in Saint Petersburg, Russia from 4 to 7 July before the final takes place in Saint Moritz, Switzerland from 15 to 18 August.
The second qualifier of the SAILING Champions League, running until 26 May, will feature teams representing top European yacht clubs competing in short, hard-fought fleet races. The innovative formula for the event, introduced in 2013 in Germany and inspired by the format of football tournaments, allows for 15 flights for a total of 45 races - so that each of the teams competes with each of the others, alternating on the YCCS fleet of J/70 boats.
The sailing clubs represented include Austria (Yacht Club Breitenbrunn, Union Yachtclub Mondsee), Czech Republic (Truc Jacht Klub Plzeň), Estonia (Eesti Match Race Liit), Finland (Åländska Segelsällskapet, Wasa Segelförening), France (Société des Régates du Havre, Société de Regates Rochelaises), Germany (Verein Seglerhaus am Wannsee), Italy (Circolo della Vela Bari), Lithuania (Nauticus Sailing Club), Netherlands (RR&ZV Maas & Roer, KNZ&RV Muiden), Norway (Larvik Seilforening ), Poland (SEJK Pogon Szczecin, Odyssey Sailing Club), Portugal (Club Naval de Cascais), Slovenia (JK Aurora), Sweden (Särö Båtklubb, KSSS-Kungliga Svenska Segelsällskapet, Hjuviks Båtklubb), Switzerland (Regattaclub Bodensee, Seglervereinigung Kreuzlingen), and United Kingdom (Wessex (Exiles) Sailing Club).
Among the teams present in Porto Cervo is the title-holder from 2018, the Circolo Vela Bari, led by Simone Ferrarese. He commented, "We are looking forward to racing in Porto Cervo again and competing with the best teams in Europe. We're going to try and have fun like we did in 2018! Of course, we want to do our best, we'll see how it ends."
During race days, participants will be made aware of environmental issues and issues related to marine pollution. Events are scheduled with the aim of promoting the mission of the One Ocean Foundation and the principles of the Charta Smeralda: the code of good practice published at the conclusion of the One Ocean Forum in 2017, which the presidents of the participating Clubs have been invited to sign.
In 2017, when the YCCS celebrated its 50th anniversary, the yacht club launched the One Ocean environmental sustainability project. The initiative, strongly supported by Princess Zahra Aga Khan, is focused on safeguarding the marine environment. Jan Pachner, Secretary General of YCCS commented: “We are happy to be able to promote the principles of the One Ocean Foundation and the Charta Smeralda through events such as the SAILING Champions League, raising awareness with all the participants in the regatta, who represent 24 of the top yacht clubs in Europe, on safeguarding the sea.” More information on the One Ocean Foundation and the Charta Smeralda ethical code are available on www.1ocean.org.
Edoardo Recchi, Sports Director of YCCS, commented: “This will be our fifth SCL regatta and we expect the traditional sportsmanship and fair racing from the clubs that are gathering here from all around Europe.”
YCCS Commodore Riccardo Bonadeo declared: "I would like to wish fair winds to all the teams that have come to Porto Cervo from all over Europe to compete in the name of their Club. We are pleased to host events such as the SAILING Champions League, where the atmosphere is genuinely sporting, and to be able to share with the SCL organization our commitment to promoting the principles of the Charta Smeralda through awareness of marine pollution."
Livestream and results by SAP
As with all SAILING Champions League events, the final two days of racing on Saturday and Sunday will be live broadcasted by SAP from 12:00 hrs (UTC+2), with expert commentators providing blow-by-blow analysis of the racing, aided by the detail provided by SAP Sailing Analytics. The SAP Sailing Analytics provide 24/7 additional statistics and data for sailors, fans, spectators and media like GPS tracking, real-time analysis, live leaderboard combined with 2D visualization. You find all results on sapsailing.com! For more One Ocean SAILING Champions League Porto Cervo sailing information
Susan Hood Trophy Race Announcement(Port Credit, Ontario)- Since 1955, fully crewed yachts have been taking on the challenge of a spring offshore race on Lake Ontario to get their crews trained and coordinated for summer races- it's the 75.0nm Susan Hood Trophy Race.
The 2019 edition of the Susan Hood Trophy Race is presented by driveHG.ca. Hosting the race is Port Credit Yacht Club and is scheduled to run on Friday, May 31, 2019 at Port Credit YC. Boats typically are back at PCYC mid-day or during the afternoon of the following day. The first great race of the season!
Why race the Susan Hood??
- Excellent warm up race for the Lake Ontario 300
- Experience the weather challenges offered in spring
- Convenient overnight racing will not tie up the weekend
- Great pre-race and post-race camaraderie
- Post-race party is AWE-some!
Ida Lewis Distance Race AnnouncementJ/Fest Sailors Invited; Newport Junior Safety @ Sea Seminar!
(Newport, RI)- The Ida Lewis Distance Race, scheduled for Friday, August 16, has added a second PHRF perpetual trophy, so that the two PHRF divisions that compete will each have their own declared overall winner (as opposed to a single overall PHRF winner as in the past). The late-summer sailing tradition, which starts and finishes off historic Ida Lewis Yacht Club, also awards an overall trophy in IRC and top-three trophies in PHRF (including Cruising Spinnaker), IRC, One Design, and Doublehanded classes as well as special trophies for top-finishing Youth and Collegiate teams.
“We think this will be a nice incentive for more PHRF boats to enter, especially the smaller ones sailed by families and friends,” said Event Chair Pat Kennedy, explaining that often in the past, boats in the lower half of the handicap rating break didn’t have much of a chance to out-perform the larger boats, some of them veteran Grand Prix racers, in the upper half. “Now that we have separate trophies, we also are able to send the two PHRF divisions on different courses, if we think that makes sense.”
Interestingly, the Ida Lewis Distance Race is not one course but any of four, ranging from 112 to 169 nautical miles. The Race Committee looks at the weather forecast before each race to determine the courses that are most likely to get all teams back to the dock within 18-24 hours. The courses, which in each case send the fleet past Castle Hill on the way out of Narragansett Bay’s East Passage to Block Island and Long Island Sounds, are “The Montauk”, “The Block Island”, “The Point Judith”, and “The Buzzards Bay Tower”. As the names imply, the courses incorporate some of the most iconic cruising grounds in New England.Invitation to J/Fest Teams
By design, the Ida Lewis Distance Race offers an offshore experience that is not too long, not too short and just challenging enough. With that in mind, organizers have invited participants in the third annual New England J/Fest Regatta (August 9-11), which is sailing out of Sail Newport, to extend their stay for the following week in order to include the Ida Lewis Distance Race on their sailing schedules. The PHRF division is perfect for the J/30s, J/88s, J/105s, J/109s, and J/121s competing at J/Fest.
Junior Safety @ Sea Seminar June 2!
All Ida Lewis Distance Race Youth competitors must attend a Storm Trysail Foundation (STF) Junior Safety @ Sea seminar or the equivalent within 24 months of the start of the race. A local opportunity to fulfill this requirement will be on Sunday, June 2 when Sail Newport partners with STF and the Storm Trysail Club Newport Station to present the one-day 2019 Newport Junior Safety @ Sea seminar at Fort Adams State Park.
This amazing learning opportunity is inspired by safety programs for ocean racers but is carefully designed for a teen audience and stresses fun, hands-on practice, communication, teamwork, and the anticipation of trouble before it happens. Participants will leave with working knowledge of safety issues surrounding the operation of keelboats in the 30-45 foot range that are suitable for offshore sailing. The morning consists of dockside instruction while the afternoon is on the water, using the skills discussed in the morning. Instruction will be conducted by Storm Trysail Club members and other highly experienced offshore sailors. Register for the 2019 Newport Junior Safety At Sea Seminar through the Ida Lewis Distance Race website: http://www.ilyc.org/distancerace
Sponsors
Ida Lewis Yacht Club hosts this world-class race with the help of generous sponsors. Gold sponsors for the 2019 Ida Lewis Distance Race are Ocean Navigator and City of Newport. Silver sponsor is Newport Shipyard; Bronze sponsors are North Sails, Rig Pro Southern Spars, and Stella Artois. Contributing Sponsors are Goslings Rum, Mac Designs, Toni Mills Graphic Design, Triton Insurance and Z Blok. For more Ida Lewis Distance Race sailing information
Regatta & Show Schedules:
May 17-18- J/121 Spring Tune-Up- Newport, RIMay 25- Spinnaker Cup Race- San Francisco, CA
May 27- Coastal Cup Race- Monterey, CA
May 30- Jun 2- Gran Prix Ecole de Navale- Brest, France
May 30- SoCal 300 Race- San Diego, CA
May 31- RORC North Sea Race- Cowes, England
May 31- Jun 2- Southern Bay Race Week- Hampton, VA
Jun 1- Delta Ditch Run- Richmond, CA
Jun 1-2- Cal Race Week- Marina del Rey, CA
Jun 1-2- Cedar Point One-Design Regatta- Cedar Point, CT
Jun 1-2- Skyway Colors Regatta- Chicago, IL
Jun 7-9- Helly Hansen Chicago NOOD Regatta- Chicago, IL
Jun 7-15- Rolex Giraglia Cup Regatta- St. Tropez, France
Jun 8- Bermuda One-Two Race- Newport, RI
Jun 8- Farallones Race- San Francisco, CA
Jun 8-9- Lady Liberty Cup J/24 Regatta- New York Harbor, NY
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
J/121 Spring Tune-Up Report
(Newport, RI)- For the second year in a row, J/Boats hosted the J/121 Spring Tune-up Regatta at Newport Shipyard on the famous Newport Harbor. Five J/121’s participated in the event- David Southwell’s ALCHEMY, Don Nicholson’s APOLLO, Joe Britto’s INCOGNITO, Greg & Jen Manning’s SARAH, and Peter Lewis’ newly-launched WHISTLER from Barbados. Like last year, the North Sails Team provided the highly-talented (and entertaining) duo of Kimo Worthington and Chuck Allen to provide on-the-water coaching, video, and post-race debriefs.
The format was designed to help the J/121 teams better understand tuning, sail trim, sail choices, and boathandling. Each day started off with practice starts. The owners were given a choice of short-course buoy racing or sail the Around Island Race (an 20.0nm circumnavigation of Jamestown/ Conanicut Island that sits in the middle of Narragansett Bay). The teams all voted to sail the Around Island Race for both days to give everyone time to dial-in faster trim, boatspeed techniques, and sail settings.
The weather cooperated both days. Friday dawned with grey leaden skies, light drizzle, and a WSW breeze of 5 to 15 kts. As a result, the teams got around the island in just over three hours.
Saturday’s weather was simply postcard perfect! Sunrise saw cool 55 deg temps, 10-18 kts from the NNW, with brilliant sunshine. By the time the fleet had three practice starts the fleet elected to sail the reverse of day one, heading counter-clockwise around the island, going through the Newport Bridge first, then Jamestown Bridge, starting/ finishing at the green Bell #11- Dumplings Rocks. After a quick restart due to full-moon tides and very strong currents, the fleet took off in the remnants of a dying NNW breeze. What everyone anticipated was the typical scenario, the norwester dying and a quick build of a fresh seabreeze from the SSW. By the time the fleet had rounded the top of the island under spinnakers, the wind shifted in literally minutes from NNE to SSW blowing 10-14 kts…the new breeze filled in extremely fast, making for a spectacular sail through Jamestown Bridge, past Dutch Island, and around Beavertail Lighthouse and point, popping kites again for a quick spinnaker run past Castle Hill to the finish between Fort Adams and Dumpling Rocks bell.
Each race was filled with its own set of tactical and boathandling challenges in the 20.0nm course; they served as a good warm-up for the rest of the season as it was interesting to observe decisions being made on board for sail selection, wind angles, sail trim and so forth. Commented Kimo Worthington, “the Round Island race format worked out great! It gave us time to follow each boat, get sail trim photos, take videos, and comment on how to improve their go-fast settings. What was cool is that it's the one time in the season the owners and crew can share what they learn on the water and get feedback and pictures from the North Sails team. It was a very productive and informative event!”
The event chairman, Jeff Johnstone from J/Boats commented, "The J/121 Spring Tune-up was a great chance for J/121 owners to get together and shake out the early season cobwebs before heading off to conquer this year's bucket list of offshore sailing events; such as the FIGAWI Race, Storm Trysail Block Island Race, Bermuda 1-2, Block Island Race Week and New York Yacht Club's 175th Anniversary. Thanks again to everyone for helping making the second annual J/121 Spring Tune-Up a success! Thank You to Veronica Brown and the Newport Shipyard team for a fantastic home base. And, kudos to Kimo and Chuck for two days of informative coaching and videos.” We're pleased to share this Dropbox link from photos/ videos taken on Friday and Saturday. To learn more about the J/121 offshore speedster
NSV Tops German J/70 Sailing League II
(Konstanz, Germany)- Germany’s J/70 Deutsche Segel Bundesliga held their second event of the season on the beautiful, majestic surroundings of Lake Constance, sailing off Konstanz on the northwestern side of the lake. The thirty-six sailing clubs from across Germany enjoyed a gorgeous weekend from May 17th to 19th, but the wind Gods would not cooperate all weekend, producing just five races for each team over the three days.
Summer, sun, and sunshine, what’s not to love about that?! But, where was the wind? Friday and Saturday did not happen, unfortunately, from the sailing perspective. In fact, the “glass outs” on both days produced gorgeous photos of the snow-capped mountains reflected on the lake’s surface. Sunday dawned gorgeous and “glassed out” as well, but ultimately a gradient wind materialized, enough to run five races per team.
After an average start to the season two weeks ago, the reigning German champion from Hamburg’s Norddeutscher Regatta Verein regained their former strength to win the second event of the DSBL.
"We knew what to expect in terms of the weather this weekend. We are glad that we were able to sail at all. It's just perfect for us," explains Tobias Schadewaldt, skipper of the winning NRV team that consisted of Johann Kohlhoff, Hinnerk Müller and Florian Thoelen.
On the podium behind the NRV, it was the Wassersport-Verein Hemelingen (WVH) team (Jan SEEKAMP, Sven GAUTER, Björn SCHÜTTE, & Jens TSCHENTSCHER) from Bremen that took the silver medal and the Bavarian Bayerischer Yacht Club (BYC) team (Veit HEMMETER, Teresa HEMMETER, Leopold LINDNER, & Jan NÜRNBERGER) from Lake Starnberg that took the bronze. Rounding out the top five was Verein Seglerhaus am Wannsee in 4th and Wurttembergischer YC in 5th.
As a result, the overall leaderboard changed quite dramatically for the season series. Leading now is Verein Seglerhaus am Wannsee with a 1-4 for 5 pts. Second is Bayerischer Yacht Club with a 3-3 for 6 pts. And, third is Wassersport-Verein Hemelingen with a 5-2 for 7 pts. After their mediocre 7th place start in the first event, NRV’s 7-1 gives them 8 pts, just 3 pts off the overall lead!
In the 2nd Sail Bundesliga, the team of ONE KIEL with helmsman Magnus Simon, Fabian Kasüske, Hinnerk Siemsen and Philipp Sudbrack prevailed in their first season against the competition.
Behind ONE KIEL, the Lübeck Yacht Club (LYC) and the Bocholter Yacht Club came in second and third.
From the 20th to the 22nd of July, the 18 clubs of the 1. Segel-Bundesliga will continue with the third match day in Travemünde. The clubs of the 2nd Sailing Bundesliga have a match break and will be back in Berlin from 23 to 25 August. For more J/70 German Sailing League sailing information
SFS Hunnebo Leads Swedish J/70 League
(Strängnäs, Sweden)- The first event of the Swedish J/70 Sailing League (the Allsvenskan) took place on the Lake of Strängnäs, about 40 miles west of Stockholm. During Friday and Saturday, Strängnäs offered nice racing conditions with a good wind of 4–6 m/s, mostly sunny, warm, and comfortable. But, on Sunday it was not possible to sail because there was never any wind.
“Strängnäs really showed its best side on Friday and Saturday with fantastic conditions. Sailing on a lake instead of out on the sea often gives more whimsical winds. Hunnebo mastered these best while Särö, who were newcomers to the Allsvenskan 2018, continued to impress,” said the regatta Chairman Isabelle Lindsten.
It was SFS Hunnebo that won the premiere round of the Allsvenskan that was settled this past weekend in Strängnäs. But, there’s was not an easy victory as they won on a tie-breaker over Särö Sailing Club at 23 points apiece. The countback determined the win, with SFS Hunnebo’s six wins bettering Särö’s four wins in the twelve races each team sailed.
For the SFS Hunnebo team from Hunnebostrand, just over ten kilometers north of Gothenburg, it was their first major win in the Allsvenskan. The team was comprised of Magnus Lundgren, Urban Lagnéus, Julia Edvardsson, Kajsa Mattsson and Peter Busck.
The win for SFS Hunnebo was not entirely unexpected. The victor’s winning skipper was Magnus Lundgren, he had the record for most race wins in a row while sailing for Gottskär SC in 2017, when he led his team to eight straight wins. Nevertheless, they were offered good competition from the Särö team (Tobias Bergqvist, Christian During, Björn Palmquist, and Lisa Rydbacken).
The competition amongst the top four was exceedingly close. While the win was determined on a tie-breaker, the Hjuviks BK sailing club was just two points back for the bronze, while the past champions KSSS took fourth place just another two points back; just five points separating the leaders from 4th place!
The Allsvenskan series sails four regattas and the next round is held in Limhamn in Malmö in two weeks (May 31-June 2). The third competition is in Örnsköldsvik from August 23rd–25th and the last is Västerås from September 13th to 15th. Follow the Swedish J/70 Sailing League on Facebook here For more Swedish J/70 Sailing League information
Surprise First Winner @ Swiss J/70 Super League
(Brissago, Switzerland)- The Swiss Sailing J/70 Super League started this past weekend for a dozen sailing teams on Lago Maggiore. The Regattaclub Bodensee won the series in 2018 and is hoping to defend their title.
The RCB President Julian Flessati commented, "We have sailed several training programs in the winter with different teams. In addition, we train each team in advance of an event. Of course, it would be nice to defend the title again. I think you always go to the competitions with the hope to defend the title. As a goal, we have set ourselves a top 3 placing. As in the previous year, the RCO, SNG and SVK will certainly provide very good, competitive teams. But in general, the level is very high, so that probably all Super League teams can win. CNV Versoix got stronger and stronger last year and is my secret favorite. Even the newcomers must not be forgotten!”
The organizing clubs for the first event, Yacht Club Locarno (YCLO) and Friends of Sailing Brissago (FSB) selected the Yachtsport Resort Brissago as the event venue. While hoping for good weather conditions, the regatta could only manage to run seven races for each of the dozen teams all weekend long, such was the light weather all across Europe.
Winning the event was a team that was not even considered to be “on the radar screen”- Bordee de Tribord- La Neuveville (Lorenz Kausche, Laurent Forrer, Timon Kausche, & Morgane Emery) with a total of 17 pts. Taking second on a tie-breaker was another surprise team- Seglervereinigung Kreuzlingen (Tom Ruegge, Michael Hermann, Stefan Staheli, & Jens Lichtblau) with 19.8 pts. The loser on that countback was the bronze medal winners- the renowned Regattaclub Bodensee (Massimo Soriano, Jonathan Rutishauser, Stephan Zurfluh, & Rene Ott). Rounding out the top five were past SSL Super League winners Societe Nautique de Geneve with 21 pts. For more Swiss J/70 Super League sailing information
Beautiful, but Light Almere Regatta
(Almere, The Netherlands)- The 9th Almere Regatta was a great sailing challenge for the teams that had assembled in Almere, The Netherlands. Like many other places in Europe, a big High pressure system meant there was not much “gradient winds” flowing down around it, with isobars spread out so far it was a wonder there was any wind for the weekend. On Saturday, that was certainly the case, with gorgeous sunny weather, but little to no wind. Sunday improved bit with winds hitting 8 kts, wonder of wonders! In the end, the J/80 and J/109 fleets both managed to sail six races.
The ten-boat J/80 class had tight racing for all three spots on the podium. Naturally, for the first major regatta of the season, some teams start out hot and fade, others do the reverse. As a result, there were many anxious moments taking place on the last three races on the second day. Starting hot, but losing their edge on Sunday was Bob Jansen’s FUN-J, posting a 2-1-2-3-3-7 tally for 11 pts net. The balance of the podium was determined by a tie-breaker at 13 pts each. On countback, it was Bram Adema’s NJORD record of 7-2-3-5-1-2 that overcame Bernard Holsboer’s JUUL scores of 3-3-1-4-2-8! That was close racing! Rounding out the top five were JOYRIDE in 4th and OANT SJEN in 5th place.
Winning the nine-boat J/109 one-design class was Roy Heiner’s TEAM HEINER 4 with an outstanding record of 2-1-1-3-3-1 for 8 pts net. Magically taking the silver was Arnout Jorrtisma’s MAJIC with a 4-2-3-4-1-2 tally for 12 pts net. Just one point back to snag the bronze was the 2018 winner of the class, Arjen van Leeuwen’s JOULE with a 5-3-4-1-2-3 scoreline for 13 pts net. Sailing photo credits- Hans Knapper For more Almere Regatta sailing information
Awesome Elite Keel Regatta for J/105s & J/70s(Belvedere, CA)- One of the more popular events on San Francisco Bay late in the spring is the Elite Keel Regatta hosted by San Francisco YC in Belvedere, CA, on the north side of the Bay. The regatta has proven to be a popular one for the large J/105 class, with twenty-six boats participating in the two-day event. This year, a J/70 class was invited as well.
The J/105s are beginning to see a “wash, rinse, repeat” for the top of the leaderboard. Once Tim Russell decided to jump back into the fleet two years ago (after a long reprisal due to work/ family stuff), he bought Lowell North & Dennis Conner’s J/105 #3 (ever heard of them?), purported to be the lightest and fastest J/105 ever built (about 600 lbs light- a “pre-scrimp” boat). He renamed the boat NE*NE and over the last two seasons, the two decades old classic continues to show her tail feathers to the fleet, once again winning a major J/105 regatta on the Bay by a significant margin. Russell’s talented crew posted a 2-3-3-1-2 for 11 pts total to win by 7 pts. However, behind them it was a real battle for the balance of the podium. The final results were not determined until the last race between Ryan Simmons’ BLACKHAWK and Phil Laby’s GODOT. Both teams are consistently at the top of the leaderboard, but it was
the BLACKHAWK crew that held on to take the silver with a 4-4-2-2-6 for 18 pts. Just one point back was the GODOT team with a record of 3-2-4-5-5 for 19 pts. The rest of the top five include Adam Spiegel’s JAM SESSION in 4th with 23 pts and Ian Charles’ MAVERICK taking 5th with 25 pts. Perhaps the most dominating performance of the regatta was Chris Kostanecki’s JENNIFER, winning the J/70 class by 8 pts with a record of three bullets and two deuces! The balance of the podium was determined by a tie-breaker at 15 pts each between Peter Cameron’s KANGAROO JOCKEY and the duo of Tom Thayer & Robert Milligan on RAMPAGE. Taking that countback was KANGAROO JOCKEY over RAMPAGE. For more Elite Keelboat Regatta sailing information
ANGEL OF HARLEM Dominates J/24 Rodeo
(Tampa, FL)- As spring winds down on Tampa Bay, it also marks the occasion for one of the last regattas of the long winter for the J/24 class that sails out of Davis Island Yacht Club. Nine teams registered to participate in last weekend’s J/24 Rodeo Regatta.
The fleet was blessed with good weather, good winds, and a good Davis Island YC Race Committee that managed to snap off five races over the two-day event.
In the end, it was local hero Robby Brown teamed up with Mark Liebel on their infamous ANGEL OF HARLEM that stole the show, accumulating three 1sts and two 3rds to handily win the Rodeo with just six pts net. Taking second was the duo of Jason Chavez and John Poulson on LONGSHOT, also counting only podium finishes in their final scores for 9 pts net.
Third place was determined on a tie-breaker at 11 pts each. Winning the countback was Seth Rosenthal’s Youth Team on SABOTAGE over AJ Grzybowski’s SHIMMER. Rounding out the top five was the DIYC Youth Team on YELLOWTAIL. For more J/24 Rodeo Regatta sailing information
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* What Does Performance Bring to Cruising?
Contrary to popular belief, a fast yacht has a lot of advantages when you’re heading off on holiday as a couple or with family.
Safety, effortless maneuverability and fun sailing even in light airs are all substantial, if not essential assets, when you want holidays on the water to play out without a hitch. Indeed, its benefits are in stark contrast to a typical heavier cruiser, which has less ballast stability and a deck layout geared around lounging about rather than maneuvering. Below are four reasons why a high-performance cruiser is the best choice for sailing with confidence.
1. Greater safety
“Between Malta and the Italian island of Lampedusa, we encountered 40 knots of breeze on very choppy seas. I was very happy to be on a seaworthy yacht with a deep draft and a cockpit designed to maneuver quickly,” explains Thierry Douillard, an inshore and offshore racer, who also relishes family cruises every summer on his J/112E.
To escape a gale, a high-performance boat with a reasonable draught (1.90m) and well-proportioned deck fittings, which are positioned in such a way as to enable effortless maneuvering, is a guarantee of safety.
“For years, I’ve chartered yachts designed for anchoring rather than sailing. Close-hauled in a strong breeze, it’s impossible to get to your destination so we’ve had to turn back on several occasions. It’s enough to put you off sailing!” admits Gilles Mendiboure, owner of the J/122 ELEGANCE, based in the Mediterranean and built at JComposites in Les Sables d’Olonne on France’s Atlantic coast.
2. More fun when sailing
Meticulous work by the naval architects and the design office goes into these high-performance J/Cruisers, particularly with regards to the power-weight ratio, which ensures the best possible balance. At the helm, this translates as a thrilling ride: finesse, precision, a bow clear of the water and, hence, responsive to the slightest twitch of the rudder as well as safe reactions in the gusts. In short, it ensures you get an immense amount of pleasure from sailing!
“I often sail alone on my boat and I love feeling that trimming is serving a purpose- you see it immediately on the boatspeed! Such responsive boats! The boat sure is nifty. I only sail along the coast from island to island. I love the idea of going from place to place under sail with a well-trimmed sail wardrobe,” smiles Gilles Mendiboure.
Thierry Douillard echoes this sentiment: “An ergonomic deck layout designed around trimming your sails and set up for maneuvers like reefing, well-positioned mainsheet tackle… All this makes for a seaworthy boat and that’s the definition of pleasurable sailing. Equally, it’s more comfortable for everyone on-board and it’s less hard on the crew.”
3. Devouring the miles faster
Isn’t the pleasure of cruising associated with discovering an unknown island, a solitary anchorage or a foreign port?
Whether it’s a question of a long sea crossing or a shorter passage, making fast headway across the water means you can get much more out of a stopover.
“Only yesterday it took me just 5 hours to cover 30 miles. Close-hauled in 18 knots of breeze, the boat racked up an average speed of 7 knots. What more could you ask, enquires Gilles. At 30° to the apparent wind at an average speed of 7 knots, or at 55° making 4.5 knots, this takes cruising to another level.”
“The extra 50cm of draught on these high-performance yachts makes a huge difference when you’re sailing and ultimately it’s not a hindrance at anchor, especially if you’re sailing in the Mediterranean. 1.50m and 1.90m makes no difference when you’re dropping anchor, but it makes a world of difference when you’re sailing!” explains Thierry Douillard.
4. Less time under power
These high-performance yachts may not be able to boast a Louis XVI chest of drawers, but the layout is very adequate and above all there is a concern for weight distribution, like water and diesel tanks generally being positioned close to the center of gravity. Add to that a light, stiff construction, and you’ll get a lively craft, which gets up and going in the slightest puff of breeze.
High-performance boats love the light airs!
Gilles Mendiboure backs this up, “In three years of sailing for six months of the year, I’ve only clocked up 120 hours on the engine. In fact, I only use it to exit and enter port.” Less motoring, less noise, even greater pleasure under sail!
Here is an example of a course between Marseille and Ajaccio, mostly upwind in strong breeze.
Green boat: fast cruiser-racer sailboat (our J/112E)
Pink boat: cruising sailboat
We noticed a difference of 7 hours at the arrival!
So, you’ve got it! For sailing along the coast or long passages, a high-performance cruising yacht can only be an advantage.
The very essence of navigation is respected on these cruising craft, with more and more emphasis on habitability. The equation of performance = less comfort, no longer holds true. So why deprive yourself when you love real sailing?
* J/70 Downwind Sailing Tactics- the following question was asked of Lucas Calabrese, winning tactician on Jud Smith’s AFRICA in the 2018 J/70 World Championship in Marblehead, MA (btw, Lucas is also a bronze Medallist skipper in 470s for Argentina in the 2012 Olympic Games):What are approximate boat speeds/ wind speeds to transition from displacement mode/ VMG light winds to WoW (wing-on-wing) to Planing Mode (jib out trimmed)?
Lucas- “It all depends on tactics, but a good guideline I think is:
- Planing: it works when you do over 9.5 to 10 kts of boatspeed.
- From planing to wing-on-wing: if you are trying to plane and you are doing between 8.2 and 9.5 kts, wing-on-wing is probably the best mode.
- From wing-on-wing to VMG: if doing less than 8.2 kts of boatspeed while on the wing you are better off going displacement/ VMG mode.
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